How do you know if and when you are going to develop stretch marks

I am 35 weeks pregnant and don't have any stretch marks yet, but I know that must women don't get them until closer to due date.  I was wondering if there is a certain way your skin will look right before stretch marks make their appearance.  Right now, my skin still has alot of give to it.  I can pinch it and it has good circulation.  Can anyone describe what their skin looked like right before the stretch marks appeared.

I don't have any first hand experience, but my mother in-law told me that when your skin is getting too stretched it will start to itch a lot. 

I didn't notice anything at all. I was totally free of stretch marks until week 38 with my first, and I had gained a lot so my skin wasn't very tight. Then, during week 39-40 I got a lot. (I went 17 days over time...)

Sorry to be telling you this, but don't worry, you could still be fine. And also, I really don't dislike my stretch marks, they just remind me of my girls. (And the boobs made it thru fine ;-)

My mother has no stretch marks after 3 children because she spread nothing but baby oil over her stomach several times a day.

I know this is a worry, but try not to stress too much.  Stretch marks are determined by genetics.  I researched this a lot when I was pregnant and there's not much you can do, it all depends on how much elastin your skin has.   So you are just going to have to wait and see.   Whether or not your Mom has any could be a good indicator of what will happen to you. 

Congratulations on being at 35 weeks,  you must be getting excited.

you know, my skin was stretched so tight that I didn't see them until after the baby was born...it wasn't a good moment.

Frequently, stretch marks don't appear until the skin that was stretched tight relaxes. If you have a lot of elastin and collagen in your skin (and you're young), it will just snap back like a rubber band and you won't have stretch marks. But if you've ever stretched a piece of rubber sheeting or naugahyde really tight and then let it go...and see the little "ridge" in the middle...that's basically what happens to your skin after it's stretched tight and then lets go. Stretch marks are a type of "scarring". And I've been told by many women (and a couple of doctors) that you can minimize that damage by applying Vitamin E, along with an easily absorbed oil (Emu oil is the most easily absorbed, I'm told), to the area a couple of times a day DURING pregnancy. Don't wait until the END. The idea is to keep the skin as flexible as possible WHILE it's stretching. Then it can snap back more easily.

During my pregnancy I used Sexxy Belly from Carol's Daugher twice a day. I used it even though people said it probably wouldn't work b/c stretch marks are hugely determined by genetics. Well my mother has tons of stretch marks and I didn't get any. In fact at 8 months i started getting lazy about using the oil and two stretch marks started forming. I used the oil everytime i thought about it and they actually started healing. So now, 10 weeks post partum, I have none!

I didn't get any with my first pregnancy, but now at 26 weeks with #2, I have my first stretchmark. It's weird, because the first time my tummy itched as it grew larger and this time it doesn't itch, but the stretchmarks are starting to appear. Luckily they are close to my skin color so noone else notices them. I tried to point it out to DH but he couldn't see it.